Alphonse
A masculine name of Germanic origin meaning "ready for battle".
Name Census estimates that about 3,259 living Americans carry the first name Alphonse. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Alphonse today is around 56 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Alphonse births was 1918 (357 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Alphonse. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
3.3K
~ 1 in 105,172 Americans
Peak year
1918
357 babies that year
Average age
56
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,437
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Alphonse: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Alphonse from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 2,529 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Alphonse by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Alphonse during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Alphonses live
The SSA's state-level files cover 25 states and territories. New York, Massachusetts, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Alphonse, while Vermont, Iowa, Nebraska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 272 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Alphonse
The name Alphonse has its origins in the Germanic languages, derived from the elements "alf" meaning "elf" and "funz" meaning "ready for combat". It was originally a compound name formed by combining these two words, representing the qualities of being supernaturally gifted and battle-ready.
In the 8th century, the name appeared in various forms across Europe, including Alphunz, Alfuns, and Alfonsus. It gained prominence during the reign of the Visigothic King Alfonso I of Asturias in the 8th century, who is credited with initiating the Reconquista against the Moors in the Iberian Peninsula.
As the name spread across Europe, it was influenced by the Latin form "Alphonsus" and the French form "Alphonse". It appeared in ancient texts and chronicles documenting the exploits of various rulers and noble families, particularly in Spain, France, and Italy.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Alphonse is Alfonso VII of León and Castile (1105-1157), who was also known as the Emperor of All the Spains. Another notable figure was Alfonso X of Castile (1221-1284), also known as Alfonso the Wise or the Learned, who was a prolific patron of literature, science, and the arts.
In France, Alphonse de Poitiers (1220-1271) was a prominent nobleman and crusader who played a significant role in the Seventh Crusade. Alphonse de Lamartine (1790-1869) was a renowned French writer, poet, and statesman during the Romantic era.
In Italy, Alphonso I d'Este (1476-1534) was the Duke of Ferrara, known for his patronage of the arts and his support of the Renaissance humanists. Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (1790-1869) was a French writer, poet, and statesman who played a significant role during the French Revolution of 1848.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Alphonse, reflecting its enduring presence across various cultures and time periods.
People
Alphonse + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Alphonse as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Alphonse: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alphonse?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,259 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Alphonse going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 105,172 US residents.
Is Alphonse a common name?
We classify Alphonse as "Rare". It ranks above 95.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10,536 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Alphonse most popular?
The single biggest year for Alphonse was 1918, when 357 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Alphonse is about 56 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Alphonse a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Alphonse in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.